CFO issues $180K in grants

Community Foundation of the Ozarks Inc. this week granted $180,000 to eight organizations.

The funds are designed to address community red-flag issues identified in the Springfield Community Focus report, according to a news release. Community health and diversity, equity and inclusion are among the issues in the report.

The grant funding went to:
• Better Life in Recovery: $40,000 to provide opportunities for people who struggle with addiction;
• Council of Churches of the Ozarks: $40,000 to connect unsheltered women with case management and longer-term shelter;
• Child Advocacy Center: $36,582 to develop and implement a training program to improve the community's response and investigation of child abuse;
• Watershed Committee of the Ozarks: $21,060 to teach special skills to Hillcrest High School students and expand the native plant nursery located at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds;
• FosterAdopt Connect: $18,051 to provide resources and mentors to youth ages 13-17 who are in unstable housing or foster care or are at risk of entering foster care;
• Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks: $12,550 for support groups that address the emotional and mental-health needs of breast cancer patients and their caregivers;
• Missouri State University: $6,000 to deliver English language courses to parents; and
• The Connecting Grounds: $5,757 to provide telehealth and virtual visits to unsheltered individuals.

"By working together, the agencies aren’t merely tackling a problem, but building a greater sense of community," CFO President Brian Fogle said in the release.